Panthers minority owner Doug Cifu suspended by NHL over 'unacceptable and inappropriate' comments on social media
Florida Panthers minority owner Doug Cifu was suspended by the NHL after making "unacceptable and inappropriate" comments on social media, the league announced Tuesday.
The incident occurred following the Panthers' 2-0 win in Game 4 vs. the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday. Following the victory, Cifu engaged in a back-and-forth with a fan that included profanity, taunting and comments about the conflict between Israel and Palestine. The latter issue was brought up by the fan due to Cifu's support of Israel on his X account. Cifu also had five Israeli flag emojis in his bio. His X account was set to private and then deleted shortly after the back-and-forth.
After multiple tweets with the fan, Cifu eventually responded, "Eat s*** 51st state anti-semite loser. Israel now and forever. Until ever [sic] last Hamas rat is eliminated."
The NHL did not specify a particular tweet in its announcement, merely stating Cifu was suspended for "unacceptable and inappropriate" posts.
Cifu will need to meet with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman before being reinstated from the suspension, per the league statement.
"The NHL has concluded that Mr. Cifu's X posts were unacceptable and inappropriate," the league said in a statement. "As a result, Mr. Cifu has been suspended indefinitely from any involvement with the Club and the NHL. An in-person meeting will be scheduled with Mr. Cifu and the Commissioner at a date to be determined."
Cifu apologized for those comments in a statement to Florida Hockey Now. In the statement, Cifu said he made "regrettable and inflammatory comments."
'Two days ago, I posted regrettable and inflammatory comments on social media,'' Cifu wrote in a statement. "My behavior does not reflect the standards of the Florida Panthers organization and the Viola family. I sincerely apologize to all those affected by my comments. I am committed to working with the NHL to amend my actions.'
The Panthers are owned by Vincent J. Viola. He and Cifu co-founded Virtu Financial in 2008. Cifu has held an ownership stake in the Panthers since 2013, when Viola purchased the team.
Cifu is listed as the "vice chairman, partner, and alternate governor of Sunrise Sports & Entertainment (SSE), the National Hockey League's Florida Panthers, FLA Live Arena, and SSE's additional operating entities," on the Panthers' website. He still serves as the CEO at Virtu Financial and sits on the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNET
33 minutes ago
- CNET
How to Watch Tonight's NHL Stanley Cup Finals Edmonton Oilers vs. Florida Panthers Game 2
The Edmonton Oilers beat the Florida Panthers in Game 1 of the 2025 Stanley Cup finals, 4-3. They'll face off again tonight at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) at Rodgers Place in Edmonton, Alberta. The Oilers' Leon Draisaitl scored in overtime with seconds remaining, which helped the team take the lead in the game after trailing behind the Panthers going into the second half. Draisaitl also scored a goal just over one minute into the game. But both teams still have a long way to go to the Stanley Cup. Game 2 will broadcast on TNT and truTV tonight. Here are the streaming services showing tonight's game and the Stanley Cup finals schedule. When is Game 2 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Finals? Game 2 between the Oilers and Panthers of the Stanley Cup Finals will be played at Rodgers Place in Edmonton, Alberta. It will air on June 6 at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) on TNT and truTV. It's also available to stream on HBO Max, Sling TV, DirectTV and YouTubeTV. How to stream the Oilers vs. Panthers Finals Game 1 You can watch tonight's game if you have a live streaming subscription. Max will also make each game of the Stanley Cup Finals available at a cheaper price than cable. Max You'll need the $17 a month Standard plan or the $21 a month Premium plan to watch the Stanley Cup finals. Read our Max review. Details See at Max The 2025 Stanley Cup Finals schedule The Oilers and Panthers will play at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) every game night on TNT and truTV. Here's the 2025 Stanley Cup schedule for the rest of the games.
The Hill
40 minutes ago
- The Hill
Detained Columbia graduate describes ‘visceral' harm of missing son's birth
Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia graduate detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over his campus activism, said he has suffered 'visceral' harm after missing the birth of his son while in federal custody. 'The most immediate and visceral harms I have experienced directly relate to the birth of my son, Deen. Instead of holding my wife's hand in the delivery room, I was crouched on a detention center floor, whispering through a crackling phone line as she labored alone,' Khalil, a green card holder, wrote in court documents filed Thursday. 'I listened to her pain, trying to comfort her while 70 other men slept around me,' he added. The Trump administration said it plans to revoke Khalil's legal status and urged him to self deport, according to reports from the Associated Press. Khalil was denied permission to go to the birth of his first child last month. Secretary of State Marco Rubio initiated removal efforts for Khalil in March citing a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act over the government's allegation that he participated in pro-Hamas rhetoric at campus protests amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. 'To not be able to see them, hold them, speak with them freely, enjoy everything I imagined our first days as a family would be like, is devastating. Worst still is knowing that they must face all the fear and notoriety of this case without me,' Khalil wrote in this week's court documents. 'The Rubio Determination is casting a shadow of suspicion across our entire family. I could never have imagined this would happen, and it is horrifying to experience this as a husband and father,' he added. Khalil, in the court filings, denied accusations that he supports Hamas but questioned the Israeli government's strikes on 'innocent Palestinians.' Democrats and advocacy organizations have urged officials to immediately release Khalil, alleging that his constitutional right to free speech has been ignored. 'This arrest is unprecedented, illegal, and un-American. The federal government is claiming the authority to deport people with deep ties to the U.S. and revoke their green cards for advocating positions that the government opposes. To be clear: The First Amendment protects everyone in the U.S. The government's actions are obviously intended to intimidate and chill speech on one side of a public debate,' Ben Wizner, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project said in a statement. The State Department did not immediately respond to The Hill's request for comment.
Washington Post
42 minutes ago
- Washington Post
NHL top draft prospect, Erie defenseman Schaefer remains upbeat while dealing with death and injury
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Matthew Schaefer's collarbone is fine, and so is the Erie Otter defenseman's perspective on dealing with adversity. Missing the final three months of the season entering his draft eligible year, the 17-year-old said, is nothing compared to what NHL Central Scouting's top-ranked North American skater has already endured .
